Tell truth about IVF add-ons, clinics are told

FERTILITY clinics selling expensive IVF ‘add-on’ treatments have been warned they must tell couples there is no evidence that they work.

Almost three-quarters of patients desperate to be parents bought at least one addon in the past two years, a survey found.

They cost up to £3,500 a time and include ‘glue’ or a painful ‘scratch’ which is claimed to help an embryo stick to the wall of the womb. But the fertility regulator has concluded there is ‘no conclusive evidence’ that any of them boost the chances of getting pregnant.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) found none out of 11 add-ons it evaluated on its website had been proven to work. Experts have claimed some couples are being hit with bills of close to £8,000 for add-ons, tripling their costs for fertility treatment.

HFEA chairman Sally Cheshire said: ‘It is crucial clinics are transparent about the add-on treatments they offer, including the potential costs, to ensure patients know exactly whether or not they are likely to increase their chance of having a baby.’

The HFEA released a statement, signed by 11 fertility bodies, saying clinics must clearly inform couples that these add-ons are ‘experimental’.

It also says clinics should not offer four of the treatments – where there is no evidence to show they improve birth rates or are even safe – except in research trials.

These procedures include ‘assisted hatching’, in which clinics use acid and lasers to help an embryo ‘hatch’ from a thick layer of proteins. This can risk damaging the embryo before it becomes a baby.